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by Mofluffy
Summary: To: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. To whoever finds this, I am Dudley Dursley and I would like to get in touch with my cousin Harry Potter. Don’t tell him that I contacted you. Please reply."
1. Chapter 1

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Chapter One: The letter

He had only been home for about a day. It seemed weird suddenly sitting in his old bedroom again after a year. He had not realized how much he had missed it. He had lived there for as long as he could remember, though something did not feel right and he knew perfectly well why.

His cousin would have been there with them.

The last time he spoke with him were those few awkward moments a year ago and he wondered why he hadn't tried talking to him sooner. Perhaps the two of them could have been friends instead. He knew he had done some really terrible things to his cousin when they were younger. Why hadn't he just been nice to him, it was so unnecessary to put him down. He hadn't done anything wrong other than being different. He stood up and paced around the room for a bit. He wanted to contact him; he had to know if he was alright.

How do you contact someone who hates you and wants nothing to do with you? And he had no idea where to send it.

"DUDLEY! DINNER'S READY!" He sighed and trotted downstairs. His mother and father were in their usual seats by the dinner table and Dudley took the empty seat next to his mother. His father was already halfway through his pork chop when he sat down and Dudley shuddered.

_Thank God I started working out when I did or I'd have been just as big as dad by now. _

As if on cue Vernon Dursley looked up at his son and raised a bushy eyebrow.

"Eat!" Though Dudley surprised his parents when he lowered his fork and knife and addressed his mother instead.

"Mum, do you have any Idea how to contact Harry?" Petunia frowned at her son.

"What do you mean 'contact Harry'? He doesn't live here anymore and I am sure he does not want to hear from any of us as much as we don't want t-"

"Mum, that was not an answer. I know he doesn't live here anymore. That does not mean that he is not family." Dudley jumped a little in his seat as Vernons fork and knife hit the side of his plate.

"WHAT?" His father yelled. Dudley couldn't help rolling his eyes at his father. He was so narrow minded and held onto grudges as a drowning man to a lifeboat. Dudley frowned at his father.

"What? Is it so wrong? I just want to know if he is okay. Mum?" He asked inquiringly. Petunia looked at her husband and then her son. Dudley sighed and was just about to get up as Petunia spoke.

"Send it to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, someone of their lot will probably pass it on." Dudley left the kitchen as his father started arguing with his mother. He found a pen and paper, sat down on his bed and wrote a note.

_To: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry._

_To whoever finds this, I am Dudley Dursley and I would like to get in touch with my cousin Harry Potter. Don't tell him that I contacted you. Please reply. _

_-Dudley Dursley_

He looked at it for a while, folded it nicely and put it in an envelope. Dudley was able to run outside unnoticed due to his parents fighting and dropped the letter in the nearest pillar box. Now all he had to do was wait for a reply.

A/N: Hey all. This was the first chapter. I know it was a little short but I'll try my best to make them longer in the future.


	2. Chapter 2

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Chapter Two: Hogwarts

It had been two days since he had sent his letter and still no reply. His father had been yelling at him ever since he found out that Dudley had actually sent it. Luckily for his mother as she always seemed to disappear when ever the question of his letter came up. He knew that his father was probably angrier at his mother than at him. He sighed loudly and looked at his watch. He hated sitting in his room waiting, but again, he didn't want to go downstairs either. He knew what would be waiting for him if he did; his father yelling and blowing himself up to look even more like a walrus. He chuckled to himself at the thought of his father rolling around on a rock with other giant walruses. He jumped as there was a noise by the window. He squinted his eyes a little, stood up and opened up the window to make the owl in. She jumped on his desk and hooted as he stroked her feathers.

"Hello there." Dudley said and smiled as she nibbled his fingers gently and dropped the letter from her beak in the process. Dudley leaned down and picked it up and opened it.

_Mr. Dudley Dursley,_

_Thank you for your letter regarding Mr. Harry Potter. I am pleased to inform you that he is at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry at the moment to help rebuild the castle. I have not told him about your letter, though I cannot think of a reason why he would not be pleased to hear from his cousin._

_If there is anything else I can help you with, you are welcome to use my owl._

_Sincerely,_

_Headmistress_

_Minerva McGonagall._

Dudley couldn't stop staring at the letter in his hands. Someone actually wrote back and she didn't seem like a bad person at all. He had always gotten the impression that all magical folk were uneducated, horrible, ignorant vermin, or his parents had that impression and had knocked it into his head, that it was a fact.

"Headmistress."He read aloud. He was a little confused. He had had the 'pleasure' of meeting a Headmaster Dumbledore. Perhaps he retired.Dudley put down the letter and once again found a pen and paper and started writing.

* * *

Dudley woke up early on that, usually dull Tuesday morning. Though this was not going to be a usual day. He smiled at the ceiling and jumped out of bed. He took a quick shower, put on a red Liverpool T-shirt and a pair of jeans. He jumped down the stairs and ran in the kitchen with a big smile on his face that his father noticed right away.

"What are you smiling at Dudley?" He asked, once again stuffing his face with food making Dudley cringe.

"I am not allowed to be happy now?" He asked his father as he grabbed a piece of toast and poured some tea.

"Of course you are honey." His mother replied and glared at his father before sipping her coffee again, leaving the table silent. Dudley looked at his watch a little impatiently, though he was happy to see that he only had to stay there for another 10 minutes. Luckily his parents decided to enjoy the rest of their breakfast in silence.

There was a knock on the door and they all looked up.

"Oh, I think that is for me." Dudley said smiling and got up.

"What? Who are you expecting this early in the morning?" His mother asked though Dudley ignored it and went to open the front door with his parents trailing behind, curious of Dudleys guest.

"Good morning Dudley, Mr. Dursley, Mrs. Dursley." Professor McGonagall said politely as Dudley moved away to let her walk past him. She was dressed in magnificent lilac robes and her hair was put up in an elegant bun. She smiled warmly at Dudley as he went behind her to help her with her coat.

"Dudley, who is this?" Vernon asked spitting coffee down his front.

"Mum, Dad, this is Professor Mc- excuse me Headmistress McGonagall of Hogwarts. I invited her." Vernon looked like he was about to burst.

"HAVE YOU GONE COMPLETELY MENTAL?" Vernon yelled at Dudley. Dudley went a little closer to his father standing between Professor McGonagall and his parents. They had never seen such determination in his eyes before.

"I invited her here, because I am apparently the only one worried about my cousin. I would like to go and see him. I actually wanted to ask your permission to go, but the way you two are acting I think I will go without it!" Dudley handed Professor McGonagall her coat again and gestured for her to go outside.

"-" She began but was rudely cut off by Vernon.

"GET out you freak, don't ever come here again." He yelled at her. Professor McGonagall just nodded and went outside.

"Where are you going Dudley?" Vernon asked as Dudley grabbed his coat. He took one last look at his parents.

"I said I would be going with or without your permission. I am going to see Harry." He shut the door behind him and went to Professor McGonagall. He smiled weakly at her.

"We best be going, my dad will figure out what I just said in about 4-3-2."

"Dudley!"

Dudley shrugged at her. She looked from Vernon to Dudley

"Take my arm, quick." He took it without hesitation. He had never felt anything so strange in his entire life. He felt like he was going to puke any second and then his stomach turned again and his screams were muffled as he landed on the ground. He coughed a little as he sat up. He felt grass beneath him and finally took a look around.

"Where are we?" He asked getting a little nervous. McGonagall helped him up and held his arm to keep him from falling again.

"Scotland. Hogwarts is just over there. I know that you have never been here before so I think you should be able to see the fantastic scenery." She said cheerfully and Dudley followed her. After ten minutes without speaking he decided to break the silence.

"I-err I am sorry about what happened back there. They can be quite rude sometimes, or my father can." He added. "My father has always hated Harry and his kind."

"Yes, I got that impression." McGonagall said.

"I am a little curious, what happened to the old Headmaster?" He knew he shouldn't have asked when he saw the sad look on her face.

"Professor Dumbledore died last year. I am surprised Potter didn't tell your family this. He and Dumbledore were very close ... I think Potter understood him in a way I never could and I have-had known him for almost 50 years." She said.

Dudley decided to keep his mouth shut after that. Suddenly Dudley could see something that looked like a spear from a church, though it turned out to be a giant tower that stretched out even further and he now saw the magnificent castle in front of him.

"Wow!" He exclaimed "Is this Hogwarts?" He asked Professor McGonagall.

"Yes it is. I am sorry you have to see it like this. I have always thought it best to show of this school at its prime. I think that is not the case right now." Dudley saw what she meant as they got closer. There were a lot of people outside waving their wands and making the bricks and stones fly high and replace them in their former spots on the castle walls. They walked past the witches and wizards and into the entrance hall. Again, Dudley had to utter another 'wow' at the great entrance. He had never thought that Harry went to school in an actual castle. He had just imagined a big house with 50 students crammed inside. He shook his head at his ignorance.

"How many students go to Hogwarts?" McGonagall frowned a little in thought.

"Right now I think there are about 800, we lost a lot of my students during the battle." She said and again Dudley smacked himself inwardly.

"So, this battle, it took place here?"

"Well the final battle took place here. It was right in there that Potter finished off Voldemort." She said and pointed at the Great Hall.

"Wha- Harry defeated him all by himself." McGonagall nodded.

"I think he should be the one to tell you about it. He is right in there." She said again and walked towards the doors to the Great Hall.

_Well, here goes nothing..._


	3. Chapter 3

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Chapter Three: Harry

Dudley felt like he was about to have a heart attack, Harry was probably not going to be glad to see him. Several wizards and witches were walking past him into the great hall. A couple of them looked at him strangely and eyed his unusual attire, in particular a blonde haired boy with menacing grey eyes. Dudley shuddered a little as the boy turned around and walked inside.

He didn't seem very nice.

It was then when he came to think about it, his family had acted the same way around magical folk and their way of dressing themselves.

_Karma's a bitch_Dudley thought and took a deep breath before walking inside. Unfortunately he was the last one to walk in and had to push the giant doors open making the whole great hall look in his direction. As Dudley walked inside whispers erupted all over the hall making him even more nervous. Suddenly he heard a familiar voice.

"Dudley?" Dudley looked up to see Harry sitting at the table closest to him. The boy next to Harry with dark hair, and to Dudley's disgust, a toad on his shoulders eyed him curiously. Dudley walked closer and gave him a pathetic wave as he stood beside his cousin.

"Hi Harry." Harry frowned at him and stood up.

"What are you doing here?" He asked and tilted his head a little when Dudley didn't answer.

"I-err, I sort of wrote to your Headmistress and asked about you. I wasn't really expecting her to reply but she did and then I asked if she would come to little Whinging to talk and she did. It didn't go that well, you know how Dad gets around you lot-" Harry rolled his eyes."-then she brought me here, because I wanted to see if you were okay. I never expected this place to be this big… So err- here I am." Dudley knew he was rambling so he decided to just stop talking. Harry didn't speak and Dudley bit his bottom lip uncomfortably. Harry nodded a little and gestured for him to sit down. They were causing enough attention as it were. Dudley sat down slowly staring at Harry. The silence was broken when 'Toad-boy' spoke.

"Aren't you going to introduce me Harry?" The boy asked smiling at Dudley. Harry cleared his voice.

"Neville, My cousin Dudley. Dudley, my friend Neville." He said and looked between the two. Neville frowned a little.

"Oh, Hi." Neville said and reached out his hand for him to shake. When Dudley didn't take it, Harry glared at his cousin.

"Sorry Neville. My cousin is not used to 'our kind'. He probably thinks that he will catch something if he touches you." Harry said a little harshly. That seemed to wake up Dudley. He grabbed Neville's hand and shook it.

"Nice to meet you. And no Potter I am not afraid of catching anything just by touching you lot." Dudley shook his head at him. Harry snorted and couldn't help smiling a little at his cousin's polite attitude towards a person he didn't even know.

"Mr. Dursley." Professor McGonagall said as she walked towards the group.

"I see you meet your cousin. Potter can I have a word?"

"Of course Professor." Harry said and followed McGonagall out the great hall. She turned towards him and stared him down. Harry felt a little uneasy. Whenever McGonagall put on her 'I-am-your-superior-do-what-I-tell-you' face, he couldn't help cowering.

"So, you wanted to talk to me."

"Yes, Harry-"

_Oh this can't be good…_

"-I think your cousin is sincere. I witnessed how he stood up to his parents and decided to go with me without their consent. He really wants to make things right and perhaps get to know you. I advise you to at least try and get along. You of all people could use a family member that cares. Think about those you lost, Potter. That boy in there is here and ready to make amends. I suggest that you at least give it a try." Harry nodded at her and scratched his head.

"It is just that we have been through a lot. He has always hated me and his sudden interest in me is, well, not normal." McGonagall chuckled and put an arm around his shoulders and led him into the great hall. Before they reached the table she leaned down.

"By the way, your cousin asked if he could stay here for a week or so. I told him he could." She patted his shoulder and left Harry gaping at her. Dudley raised a hand and waved nervously at him.

* * *

Harry, Neville and Dudley sat in silence for 20 minutes though that silence was broken when someone hit Harry on the head with a bag. Harry rubbed his head and looked up at his attacker. Malfoy swung his bag over his shoulder and smirked at Harry.

"What was that for Malfoy?" Harry groaned at him, still rubbing his head.

"Oh, _sorry_ Scarhead I didn't see you there." Harry stopped rubbing his head immidiately. He threw Malfoy completely off his high horse when Harry decided to smile at him and tilt his head.

"Of course you didn't, though I think you should watch it next time. Oh and please send your mother my love, you know what I am getting at, right? Your not that stupid are you?" Harry answered so sweetly he almost threw up a little bit in his mouth. Malfoy didn't notice this and his smirk faltered and walked away sulking. Neville nodded aprovingly at Harry. Dudley looked like someone hit him over the head with a club.

"I saw that guy earlier, I take it you are not friends." Harry snorted at him.

"Far from it. Though I think he got my point when I slipped his mother in the conversation." Harry said and looked at Neville.

"Yeah, he better. You got them all of the hook at the trial. I guess old habits die hard, ey?" Neville said and poured some pumpkin juice and handed a glass to Dudley. He took it, believing it was orange juice and drank. He had expected the taste of sour oranges and when he tasted the sweet pumpkin juice he spit it out, soaking his front. Harry and Neville laughed and Dudley glared at them.

"What _is _that?" Harry and Neville were too busy laughing to answer him. Harry patted Dudley on the shoulder to stop him from coughing.

_This is going to be interesting_ Harry thought.


	4. Chapter 4

First of all I just want to thank my reviewers for their support:

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Thank you ^_^

-Mofluffy

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Chapter Four: Beware of the witch

"So er, would you like the 'Grand Tour'?" Harry asked Dudley hesitantly. Dudley nodded trying not to show how excited he actually was. They bid Neville goodbye and went out to the entrance hall.

"Over here we have the hourglasses where all our housepoints go, you see whenever we do good, or bad for that matter, in class the teachers can give or take points. Prefects and the Headboy and girl can also give and take points. Whenever they do, they will, 'magically' end in the hour glasses. Bloody hell, we just lost some." Dudley watched wide eyed as some of the red sand left the hourglass. "We will get it back later." Harry said and began walking up the stairs, Dudley trailing a little behind.

"Okay-" Harry said turning on the stairs in front of Dudley. "Don't freak out, the stairs will-" Harry never got to finish because the staircase started moving at that very moment and Dudley shrieked. He closed his eyes tight until he felt the staircase came to a halt. Harry snapped his fingers in front of his face.

"Dudley, we need to move. The stairs are about to switch again." Dudley ran up the stairs and threw himself at the nearest wall pressing against it. Harry chuckled a little and pushed his cousin away from the wall and further up. The finally ended up right in front of the fat lady. Dudley once again screamed as she started moving in her portrait.

"Password."

"You have to stop that some time Big-D. Victory." He told her and she let them inside. Dudley was amazed by the cosy common room.

He smiled at Harry.

"If I had known that Hogwarts was like this I would have asked to come as well." Harry laughed.

"Yeah well, you wouldn't be the only muggle who has tried to get into Hogwarts." Harry said and thought of Aunt Petunia, Dudley was of course not aware of this. Harry went up the stairs and showed him around the boys dormitory. They decided to sit down and Harry called for Kreacher (He made sure that Dudley knew what he was about to do, he was getting a little sick of all his screaming.) Kreacher brought warm butter beers and some treacle tart.

"Anything else Master Harry?" Kreacher asked and Harry shook his head.

"No that would be all, thank you Kreacher." Harry said and smiled at the elf and he left with a 'pop'

"Cool." Was all Dudley could muster.

"Your Professor told me that there were a lot of students here at Hogwarts. Are they all at home for the summer?" Dudley asked and sipped on his Butter beer, which he actually enjoyed.

"Yeah my best friends Ron and Hermione are in Australia to pick up her parents. They've been hiding there since last year, memories erased of course but they'll fix it." Harry said more to himself than Dudley. He had really missed them these last couple of weeks. Fred's funeral was held only two months ago and it suddenly struck him how much had happened last year. He hadn't told his relatives about this or the fact that he was the one to defeat Voldemort in the end. None of them would probably be interested in such small details, though Dudley was here now.

_You of all people could use a family member that cares_

Harry shook his head to clear it, making Dudley stare at him.

"Are you going loopy on me now? You haven't spoken in 10 minutes."

"Oh sorry. I was just- Did you say something before? I didn't quite catch that."

"I just said that I was sorry to hear about your late Headmaster." Harry nodded. It seemed so long ago that Dumbledore died.

"Yeah, he was a good friend." Harry replied lamely. He decided to skip the whole Dumbledore conversation and crossed his legs on the couch.

"Would you like to see some pictures?" Harry tried. Dudley beamed and put his cup on the table.

"Sure!" Harry pulled out his wand making Dudley flinch for the umpteenth time that day. He smirked at Dudley and made a 'watch this' grimace.

"Accio photo album." The door to the boys dormitories swung open and his old photo album soared into his arms. Dudley nodded approvingly and he sat a little closer as Harry opened the book.

"This is Ron, Hermione and I in our first year. This one here in from our fourth year at Christmas, that is all the Weasleys-" Harry said and went from top to bottom. "That's Bill, the oldest Weasley brother. He got married last year to a girl named Fleur. I have known her since my fourth year. Their wedding was cut short though, there was an attack at their house that night. That there is Fred and George. Fred unfortunately died only two months ago-" Harry said and ran a finger across the old picture. "That is Molly and Arthur Weasley, Ron's parents. Next we have Ron, Hermione and I. And tha-"

"Who is _that_?" Dudley asked and pointed at Ginny. Harry laughed a little at his cousin's hungry look.

"That is Ginevra Weasley, Ginny for short, unfortunately she is taken." Dudley sat up a little straighter and gifted Harry with a smirk worthy of Draco Malfoy.

"I wouldn't mind getting in a little fist fight to get her." He said and punched the air. Harry shook his head.

"Bring it on Big-D." Harry said and casually pointed his wand at him. Dudley looked confused.

"What do you mean?" He said and frowned.

"You are looking at him, now enough about my girlfriend-" Harry said and turned the page. "Oh, I'd forgotten about this picture." Harry said as they reached a picture taken in his fifth year.

"This is the DA or Dumbledores Army. We were a group that didn't like our new teacher in Defence Against the Dark Arts, she didn't really teach us anything. She likes the sound of her own voice that Umbridge."

"Who taught it then?"

"I did." Harry said a little embarrassed.

"Wow, what did you teach them then in this Defence ag- this class?" Dudley said and took the book from him to look at the picture.

"Mostly protective and defensive spells. You never know when someone is going to attack you, at least not back then."

"There are some good looking girls in this class." Dudley said and smiled. Harry rolled his eyes.

"Is that all you think about?"

"That and boxing."

"Boxing? We have _so_ little in common." Harry said and snorted. Harry saw him trace a finger across the middle of the picture right where Cho Chang was standing.

"Okay perhaps not that little, that girl you are ogling is my ex-girlfriend." Harry said and chuckled. Now it was Dudleys turn to laugh.

"Seriously, how do you do it? You will always be a scrawny git to me."

"Hey!" Harry said and got up. Dudley got up as well and took the album with him.

"Give that back! Come on don't be such an arse." Harry said as Dudley hid it behind his back as Harry got closer.

"What is going on here?"

"Ginny!" Harry said and ran to her and embraced her. She stood up on her toes and gave him a small peck on the lips.

"I thought you weren't coming for another week."

"Mum let me go back a little early. She was tired of me whining over you." She said and slammed her hand to her forehead for dramatic effect. She laughed and smiled at Dudley.

"Hi, I'm Ginny Weasley. Are you new here?" She said and shook his hand. Dudley shook his head.

"No I'm, I'm err Harrys cousin Dudley." Ginny frowned at him.

"Really? How did you get here?" She said and folded her arms across her chest. Harry could see her disapproval immediately. He went to stand a little closer to Dudley.

"It's alright Ginny. We've talked a little and he asked if he could come. McGonagall picked him up actually. He will be staying here for a week or so." He said and she loosened up a little, she still looked upset though.

"As long as he doesn't try anything. He should be aware that he is at a school full of witches and wizards ready to stand up for Harry no matter what."

"Oh he knows." Harry said and playfully punched Dudley on the arm. He responded by laughing nervously.

_Note to self: Don't mess with the Weasley girl._


	5. Chapter 5

**I ****am sorry it took so long for me to update, to be honest I didn't really know what to write.**

**Since some of you have complained that it's a bit out of character and about mistakes that I have overlooked, I will try my best to please you all. (Well, I probably won't be able to satisfy all of you but hey no one's perfect. Right?? ^_^) **

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**Chapter Five: Unpleasant Memories**

_Harry had been sitting in Dudleys window sill for half an hour. His Aunt and Uncle had left early that morning to visit a distant family member in Hastings, whom Harry had never met. They would not be back until the day after tomorrow so Harry and Dudley had been left at home with Mrs. Figg. She usually just sat in the living room and watched television and left the boys to entertain themselves. She called for them whenever it was time for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Harry had the chance to go downstairs and watch television whenever she came to babysit, but he found the shows Mrs. Figg liked to watch incredibly dull. He usually sat at the kitchen table reading or in his cupboard playing with the small amount of secondhand toys he had been given. _

_This particular day was different though. Dudley had decided to go outside with his so-called friends to play, though Harry knew that they were most likely outside to find a small animal to torture of whatever they did when they weren't tormenting him. He had taken the chance to go to Dudleys room and he was now watching Dudley and his friends outside. They had just pulled out Dudleys bike from the shed in the small garden in the back. Harry knew that Dudley had only used the bike once since he got it a year ago. Like everything else Dudley got, he discarded them without a thought when he lost interest. _

_Harry sighed and rested his head on his arm watching the boys take turns speeding down the street on the bike. He had been so lost in thought that he didn't notice the boys looking up at him. He suddenly made eye contact with Dudley for a second, before he jumped down and ran down the stairs to his cupboard. He had only just slammed the small door shut when he heard Dudley and his friends walk into the house. Harry searched his cupboard and found a torn up book opened it up and pretended to read. The door was opened only seconds later as his cousin poked his huge head inside and stared at Harry._

"_Why were you in my room?" He said with a malicious sneer. Harry shook his head rapidly._

"_I wasn't in your room. I have been reading in here for an hour." Harry lied, even though he knew that Dudley had seen him. Dudley's eyes lowered to the book in Harry's hands._

'_H.C Andersen: The Ugly Duckling' _

"_Where did you get this?" He asked and grabbed the book out of Harry's hands. Harry looked at his cousin, confused. _

"_I got it from you. You threw it at me only three weeks ago and said that you didn't want it." Actually, he had not said he didn't want it. Dudley had just picked up the first heavy object he could find to throw at Harry. He had never implied that Harry could have it but Harry took every opportunity to read something new or have a new toy whenever Dudley got bored with it. He would never have had anything if he hadn't. Also Harry had a slight suspicion that Dudley barely knew how to read. Dudley face disappeared for a few minutes before he once again poked his head inside. _

_He was smiling… or about to belch, Harry wasn't sure. _

"_Would you like to try my bike?" Harry frowned uncertainly._

"_Come on, we will all have a go. It will be fun!" He said. His friends agreed with excited voices. Harry's face lit up and he nodded, following the boys outside. Two of Dudleys friend ran down the street and stood on each side of the narrow road. Dudley put an arm around Harry's shoulder while the third friend, called Carl dragged the bike after them. Dudley put the bike in front of Harry and he got on with a little difficulty, the bike was too high and he had some trouble reaching the pedals. _

"_Okay, we will take turns and see who is the fastest. Carl, hand me the watch please-" Carl reached into his pocket and handed Dudley they old watch. _

"_Get ready- set- GO!" Dudley yelled and Harry sped down the street as fast as he could. He was getting near the two boys at the end of the street and stomped even harder on the pedals. _

_Then it seemed like everything went into slow motion. He felt the bike shake as he tried to break. Dudley had been so kind not to tell Harry that the bike had no foot-breaks. Harry saw the hand-breaks too late and ended up soaring through the air as the bike wobbled out of control. He landed ungracefully on the grass and rolled onto the pavement, scraping his elbows and knees. He heard the outburst of laughter the moment he tried to get up. As he steadied himself on his knees and hands he peaked at the group beneath his right arm. As his head was turned the group was upside down but it was clear that the boys were roaring with laughter at Harrys misfortune. _

_He should have known better._

_From that day forward he made a promise to himself to never trust Dudley again. _

_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_

Harry woke up suddenly. It had been a long time since he had dreamed about that day. He ran a hand through his messy locks and glanced at the bed next to him. It used to be occupied by his best friend Ron, though as Harry looked over he saw the figure of his cousin who was snoring loudly. Harry sat up in his bed and decided to take a shower.

Fifteen minutes later as he opened the door to his dormitory, he noticed that Dudley had woken up. Dudley yawned and sat up. Harry went to his trunk and pulled out his black cloak. He was already dressed in a pair of black pants and a bottle green button up shirt. He dragged the cloak over his shoulders and fastened it.

"You didn't wear _that_-" he gestured towards the handsome black cloak "-yesterday." Dudley said. Harry, being a little caught up with the dream that had made him wake up a little late, shrugged at him.

"The Minister is visiting today and I wanted to look nice. I would like to remind you not to mock 'my lots' choice of clothing. It is not nice."He was aware that Dudley hadn't exactly _mocked_ his clothing, but he was just upset at the suppressed memory that had disturbed his night's sleep and made him late for his meeting with Kingsley. Harry grabbed his wand and put it in the wand-sheath Ginny had bought for him in Hogsmeade. Harry went to the mirror and took a look at his reflection.

_You look ravishing Mr. Potter! _The Mirror answered him.

Dudley put on his shirt from the day before and he was pleasantly surprised when he saw that it had been washed during the night along with his jeans. He put his clothes on as Harry was frantically stoking his hair flat. Harry went for the door, his cloak swishing at his feet. Dudley followed him silently down to the entrance hall. Harry smiled at the dark skinned man standing at the bottom of the stairs waiting for him. Dudley's eyes widened as he noticed the man from TV. He was even more surprised when the two greeted each other as old friends.

"Harry, always a pleasure to see you." Harry smiled as he shook Kingsleys hand.

"The pleasure is all mine, _Minister._" Harry said and grinned at him. The Minister laughed and shook his head.

"Sorry Kingsley, I couldn't help it. I am just so glad that we, at last, have a _sane _Minister."

"Enough of that, Harry I wanted to talk to you about your Aurors exam. It will take place on the 25th of August. I am sure you will pass it though and I have already put in a good word for you at the Ministry, not that you need it." Kingsley said and winked at him. Kinglsey was about to drag him away, when Harry remembered Dudley.

"Breakfast is at the great hall, I will be with the Minister today." Harry said as he followed Kingsley out of the entrance hall.

* * *

Dudley didn't see Harry until lunch when he gracefully strode into the great hall. Dudley had never really seen Harry in his wizard attire and he had to admit that he looked almost regal, walking down the aisle between the tables. Harry sat down on the other side of the table and filled up his plate with toast and cheese.

"Where's your girlfriend today?" Dudley asked trying to sound casual. Harry looked up from his toast before he took another bite.

"She is with McGonagall, I think she will be here in a moment." 10 minutes later Ginny walked through the doors. She was wearing a lilac dress that showed her pale shoulders nicely. She sat down next to Harry and grabbed a piece of toast from his plate.

"How was your meeting?" Harry asked her.

"I was interrupted when Kingsley came in. He insisted that I stayed but you know how McGonagall is. She threw me a glare and I decided to leave." She snorted. "I had just informed McGonagall that I wanted to join the Holyhead Harpies as he walked in and he said that he might be able to set up a meeting with Gwenog Jones. I might even be able to try out if it goes well." She beamed at him. Harry hugged her and laughed happily.

"Wow, Gin. That is fantastic. He told me this morning that he put in a good word for me as well, at the Ministry." Ginny squealed and they hugged again making Harry laugh even more.

"Do you have more great news or should I just keep my arms around you for the entire day?" Harry asked and Ginny swatted his shoulder. The two of them discussed their future plans during lunch. Dudley started wondering what had made Harry give him the cold shoulder this morning. He did not want to disturb their conversation so he excused himself and left the table. He wondered if they even noticed him leaving. He was so lost in thought that he hadn't been watching where he was going and bumped into a warm body on his way out the great hall.

"Ugh." Dudley looked down at the person he had just knocked over. She was trying to get up and spit out her hair that got stuck in her mouth as she fell. Dudley reached out a hand and pulled the witch up.

"I am so sorry about that." He breathed. She dusted off her skirt and gave him a half smile.

"I'm Dudley Dursley." The girl took his hand and shook it.

"I'm-"

**

* * *

**

**A/N: …I'm going to let you guys decide who 'Dudleys mystery girl' should be. The one that gets the most votes wins. **

**-I had been thinking of stuff that Dudley could have done to Harry when they were younger. I had no idea what to write, so I used one of my own childhood memories. Sometimes kids are just cruel, wouldn't you agree? I hope I did Dudley justice in this chapter. ^_^**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Until next time.**

**-Mofluffy**


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed and the poll numbers are up. The winner is Luna ^_^**

**Now on with the chapter....**

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Chapter Six: Hate on me

_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_

"I'm Luna." She replied and smiled at him. She tilted her head and squinted her eyes at him as if in deep thought. When she didn't speak for a full minute, Dudley snapped his fingers in front of the blond. She shook her head vigorously.

"I haven't seen you around. Are you one of those male tree nymphs that only appear once every century in the form of a human boy? I just think I saw a branch sticking out of your ear a second ago." Dudley turned to look behind him. He had to be in some kind of hidden camera show. When he saw that he was standing alone in the entrance hall he figured that this girl was obviously losing her mind.

"Err, no..." She just smiled at him.

"I'm not magical, in any way." Dudley said and buried his hands in his pockets. This girl didn't seem to care because she linked her arm with his and started steering him towards the great hall again.

"You might be a muggle but you seem magical enough to me." She said and once again smiled sweetly at him before dragging him inside.

Harry was still talking to Ginny as Luna sat down with Dudley. Harry eyed them curiously.

"I see that you met Luna, Dudley." Dudley's cheeks flushed a little.

"Yeah." He replied lamely. "I bumped into her, literally."

"How do you know each other?" Luna said looking at Harry.

"This is my cousin, Luna. Believe it or not." Harry said and snorted a little. Dudley was still not aware of Harry's dream that night and had no idea why he was upset.

"Oh I believe it-" she said as if Harry had meant it as a question. "You have the same features, like your mouths for example." Luna said airily. Harry frowned and snorted again, though this time incredulously, rather than amusement.

"Riiight." Harry said and got up.

"I am going to see McGonagall and ask her if she needs any help." Harry got up and Ginny followed him. Dudley was left alone with the blond and he felt a lump forming in his throat. He had always had a little trouble with girls, especially ones as pretty as Luna.

Dudley cleared his throat.

"So Harry talked about becoming an Au-Au-"

"Auror?" Luna said and Dudley nodded.

"What is that exactly?"

"They work for the Ministry. They help capture dark wizards." She explained and poured him a glass of juice.

"Pumpkin juice?" Dudley shook his head and held his hands up. He was never going to drink that ever again.

"No thanks. So they are kind of like the police." Luna shrugged.

"Yeah I guess." She emptied her glass in one and got up. "I am sorry to leave you but I forgot that I have to help rounding up the Thestrals that flew away during the battle. I hope to see you again later." She said and shook his hand before walking out the great hall again; humming a tune Dudley had never heard before.

_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_

Dudley had walked around the castle for a couple of hours and talked to McGonagall. He had been given permission to borrow some old clothes from Harry, which ironically enough used to be his own. Dudley had then wandered aimlessly through the halls before he decided to retreat to the Gryffindor common. Just finding the common room again took 20 minutes. This castle was huge!

He was now sitting alone, staring at the fire on a comfy couch in the common room.

Dudley had not felt this alone in a long time. He had to talk to Harry when he came back. He wanted to know what had made him act so cold all day. He couldn't really remember saying or doing anything wrong. Had it been his remark about his clothes in the dormitory that morning? He sighed and rested his head in his hands. He had come here to make up with Harry and now he just pushed him even further away. He had never believed Harry to be so bitter. He had fought with his parents, and went to his cousin's bloody school without permission. There was a slim chance that they would forgive him for that.

Dudley got more and more agitated the longer he waited for his cousin and as if on cue Harry walked in. Dudley sprang up from his seat. Harry raised his hands in defence as Dudley glared at him.

"Why have you been avoiding me all day?" He said accusingly. Harry shrugged.

"Well, because you are my cousin, and we hate each other... _remember?_" He said and raised an eyebrow. Dudley snorted.

"Well, you have been acting all cold and weird today. I don't remember saying anything to insult you or your lot-" Harry laughed humourlessly and pointed at him.

"See! That is what I mean. You can't say anything without insulting me, even when you mean to be nice. It has always been like this Dudley. You will never change. I really hoped you would but every time you say anything remotely polite you end up ruining it with some backhanded insult." Dudley's mouth was open in horror.

"I do not!" Harry raised a single eyebrow at him.

"Ok, fine! I admit that I have acted somewhat-" Harry snorted loudly.

"Somewhat? Dudley you have been nothing but horrid to me. What about that 'bike incident'."

"Bike incident?"

"Yeah, you and Carl and those other two blokes that you call friends, tricked me into riding that bike and laughed at me when I fell off. That is just one of the things I have had to endure from you for the last 17 years." Harry was yelling and Dudley recoiled.

"So I will ask you one more time; Why are you here?"

"Obviously, because I wanted to make amends." Harry smacked his hand hard on his forehead.

"Yes! Of course why didn't I think of that? It is just the most obvious thing in the entire world for you to come and apologize for 17 years of doing nothing but tormenting me. I have been so stupid. Thank you for enlightening me!" Harry said his eyes wide in amazement at his cousin's stupidity. Dudley shook his head.

"It was stupid of me to come here." Said Dudley and Harry shrugged angrily.

"I didn't want you to."

"Yeah, you have made that quite clear!" said Dudley and pushed past him. Harry felt Dudley's shoulder hit his rather hard as he walked by.

As Dudley was trotting away from the portrait hole and down the corridor, he heard Harry yell at him to come back but he kept walking. Harry finally caught up with him and hit him hard in the shoulder. Dudley's eyes flashed with anger as he pushed his cousin even harder. Suddenly Dudley and Harry found themselves in a pushing match all the way down the stairs hitting harder and harder the further they got. As they reached the landing on the first floor Dudley hit Harry as hard as he could, though this time he missed his shoulder and hit his face instead. Harry went down, hard. Dudley's hands flew to his mouth as he sat down beside his cousin. It occurred to Dudley then that half of the student body had been watching their fight all the way down. Harry groaned and tried to sit up. Dudley put a hand under his arm and lifted him to a sitting position. After a moment Harry spoke.

"You punch really hard, you know that?" Dudley bit his bottom lip. Apparently Harry couldn't hold it in any longer and started to laugh, Dudley joined him after he had gotten over the shock. Whenever they looked at each other they started laughing even harder.

"We- must have- looked- like children." Harry said in between sobs of laughter. They were both rolling on the floor clutching their stomachs when someone interrupted them.

"Ehm. What are you doing on the floor mate?" Harry looked up to see Ron and Hermione standing in front of them. Hermione was trying hard not to grin.

"Oh Merlin. Ron, Hermione you're back!" Harry said and got up to hug them both. Dudley sat up and stared at the two. So this was Harry's best friends.

Hermione smiled at Dudley.

"Hi, Dudley. Harry wrote to me and told me that you were here." She turned to Harry again.

"We won't be here for more than a day or two. It was trickier than we thought, removing the memory charm." Harry looked disappointed but nodded.

"Come on, we better get away from all the people staring." Harry pulled Dudley to his feet.

Perhaps this was not going to be such a bad day after all.

_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_

**A/N: Hey all, I wrote this really late at night so I apologize for any spelling or grammatical errors.**

**Please remember to review ^_^**

**-Mofluffy**


	7. Chapter 7

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Chapter Seven: Malfoy vs. Potter

Dudley had enjoyed his day with Harry, Ron and Hermione. Perhaps a little more than he'd like to admit. He had soon found out that Ron was the joker of the three, Hermione the brain and Harry the heart of the whole trio. He had never thought his cousin to fit into the role of leader as well as he did. He had always thought of him as a following kind of guy.

He woke up early the following morning. He could hear Ron snoring in the bed next to his and then he heard a different sound. Harry was moaning and whimpering in his sleep. He got up and went closer to Harry's bed. It wasn't the first time he had heard Harry moan and talk in his sleep. When he returned after his 4th year Dudley remembered, Harry had woken up screaming on more than one occasion. He hadn't really discussed the war with Harry and he knew he had to bring it up eventually, though he didn't really want to. He knew that he was going to hear about all the heroic stuff they had done in the past year.

Dudley did not want to feel like the big bad wolf, he knew he was going to when he figured out just how horrible a past Harry had. He still had his parents, Harry had been left alone when he was a baby and Dudley had not made it any easier for his cousin to be an orphan.

He couldn't breathe, he needed to get out. He hurriedly put on some clothes and ran out. He didn't stop until he reached the last landing. He had not expected anyone to be up this early. He saw the blond boy he had met a few days ago, trot into the great hall. The blond didn't even notice him. Dudley was just about to go into the great hall himself when the blond turned and walked right into him.

"Watch it Blondie!" said Dudley, nearly falling over.

"What?" the blond said loudly. Dudley raised a single eyebrow and tilted his head a little.

"Are you deaf? Watch. It. Blondie." Dudley said again as if talking to a five-year-old. The blond sneered at him and took a step closer.

"Who do you think you are?"

"I'm Dudley Dursley, Harry Potter's cousin. And who the _hell _are you?" The blond decided to ignore Dudley's tone of voice and stood up a little straighter, raising his head.

"I'm Draco Malfoy." He waited for the realization to show on Dudley's face, though that never happened. Dudley smirked and frowned at him instead.

"Is that supposed to ring a bell?" He said and shook his head. Apparently this was too much for Malfoy and he raised his wand.

"_Protego!_" Someone shouted. Dudley was surprised to see Harry walk inside with his wand raised as the spell created a barrier between Malfoy and Dudley.

"Step back, Dudley." Dudley immediately did as he was told and walked backwards until his legs hit the bench at the Gryffindor table. Malfoy seemed to have frozen for a second but soon his eyes were shooting daggers at Harry and he tried to deflect the spell.

"_Rictusempra!_" Malfoy shouted but Harry was just as quick.

"_Impedimenta!_" Harry took advantage of the spell slowing down and moved away.

"_Orchideous!_"

"Ahhh!" Malfoy yelled as flowers started to spring out of the tip of his wand. Harry laughed, which only agitated Malfoy further.

"_Crucio!_" Harry just moved in time for the spell not to hit him. Malfoy walked towards him and Harry jumped on the table.

"You wanna play rough Malfoy. _Serpensortia!_" Harry yelled and a giant snake landed in front of Malfoy. He backed away from it. Dudley then heard the strangest sound coming out of Harry's mouth. It was not like anything he had ever heard before. He hissed and flicked his tongue apparently talking to it, because it turned its head towards him and hissed back before it slithered towards the Slytherin.

Even though it was moving away from him, Dudley couldn't help jumping up on the table beside Harry. He had a flashback of his first encounter with the snake at the Zoo. He had been afraid of them ever since. Malfoy was glancing between the snake and Harry, wavering between spells to cast towards him. Harry, seeing Malfoys hesitation, jumped off the table again still hissing at his snake. Suddenly Malfoy snapped out of his reverie and pointed his wand at the snake.

"_Reducio!_" His snake shrank instantly and looked more like a small caterpillar. Before Harry could say Quidditch he had aimed a spell towards him.

"_Incarcerous!_" Two large ropes appeared and wrapped around Harrys torso. He struggled to get free but it was no use. He fell backwards as the ropes covered his legs. Malfoy moved towards him slowly and bend over his body.

"You lose." He gloated and stepped over Harrys legs. Harry made a swift move and kicked Malfoys foot, making him fall over. Harry was just able to point his wand at the ropes.

"_Evanesco!_" The ropes vanished and Harry was now the one bending over Malfoy. Dudley went to stand beside his cousin and as if Harry had used Legimens they both leaned forward, hands on their knees looking down at Malfoy. They turned towards each other and Dudley gestured for Harry to decide what to do.

"Are we done?" Harry asked him, Malfoy just made an 'umpf' sound.

"I take that as a yes. Come on Big-D." Harry said and Dudley bumped his fist with Harrys and they walked out the great hall together.

"That was absolutely brilliant!" Dudley said and punched the air. Harry smiled at him and shrugged.

"Well, he deserved it and I know his technique. It is not the first time I have had a wand-off with Draco Malfoy."

"What was it you did with the snake?"

"It is actually a long story. I have been able to talk to them because Voldemort left a piece of his soul inside me. He was a Paselmouth, meaning he could talk to snakes and so can I. When he tried to kill me last year he removed the piece of his own soul within me. I can still remember some Paselmouth but not much. I thought I might as well give it a shot today. He understood me at least. I think I told the snake to 'scream at him' instead of 'scare him', that was why he turned his head and looked at me. Well he got the point in the end." Dudley admired his cousin and smiled at him until he remembered.

"Hey! At the Zoo, back when we were eleven. Did you talk to that snake as well?"

"Yeah, though I was just as surprised as you were when the glass disappeared. I wasn't able to control my magic back then." They walked in silence back to the common room as the castle was beginning to wake. They reached the portrait hole when Harry put a hand on Dudleys arm.

"Why were you up so early? I woke up and you were gone." Dudley made eye contact with Harry and blushed a little.

"You were having a bad dream I think, you were moaning and mumbling in your sleep. I just felt bad. I have treated you terribly through the years and when I saw how much pain you seemed to be in, I had to get away to clear my head. I just- I am sorry Harry. I hope you can forgive me, eventually." Harry nodded.

"Yeah well, I think you have made up for some of that when you decided to come here." Dudley smiled at him. It was the first time Harry had mentioned his coming to see him as somewhat positive.

_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_

Harry, Dudley, Ginny, Ron and Hermione had walked around the castle reminiscing about the past and telling funny stories from their time at the school. Dudley had enjoyed that immensely and hadn't noticed Ron and Harry whispering behind him. Harry went to put a hand on Dudleys shoulder and nudged his side.

"Ron and I have been talking and we want to give you a little surprise." Dudley looked at them both and nodded excitedly. His smiled faltered when Harry conjured a black piece of cloth and blindfolded him.

"Harry, what-"

"Don't worry! I am not going to trick you or anything, just relax." He breathed heavily as the two boys led him outside. He was still not sure that this was a good idea.

Ron and Harry stopped him suddenly and Harry leaned down and whispered in Dudleys ear, making him jump a little.

"Have you ever imagined what it would be like to fly?" Dudley shook his head vigorously.

"Well-" Harry said and removed the cloth slowly. Dudley had to get used to the sunlight and shut his eyes tight before opening them slowly. In front of him were two broomsticks.

"Oh _hell_ no!"


	8. Chapter 8

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Chapter Eight: Come fly with me

"No."

"What do you mean 'no'? Come on! It is not that scary, I promise."

"No."

"Come o-"

"No, no no no!!! How many times do I have to tell you?" yelled Dudley as Harry was dragging him towards the brooms. For the first couple of minutes, Dudley had been staring at the brooms as if they were going to attack him. Harry finally let him go. Dudley still pulling himself away had not expected it fell backwards landing on the grass with a dull thump. Harry sighed and shrugged his shoulders indifferently. Harry and Ron mounted the brooms and Dudley's eyes followed them as they soared into the sky. They both looked so graceful. Dudley couldn't help smiling as they landed next to him a few moments later. Harry raised a brow and smiled at him.

"Come on Dudley. You will be sitting in front and I will steer. We won't be able to go as high anyway, with the two of us on it. Come." Harry extended his hand for Dudley to take. He pulled him up and Dudley got on the broom, feeling nervous. Harry sat behind him and put his hand on the broom gesturing for Dudley to hold on as well. Dudley took a deep breath as he felt himself being lifted off the ground.

"No, no, no! I don't want to. Put it down! I am scared of heights, please!" He begged. He could hear Harry taking a deep breath.

"Dudley-"

"Yeah." Dudley whimpered.

"Put your foot down for me." Harry said as if talking to a five-year-old. Dudley had pulled his feet up making them dig into Harry's thighs.

"Just one foot. Relax." Dudley, who had his eyes closed, bit his lip harder as he released one foot. He was surprised when his foot hit something solid.

"We are inches above the ground Dudley. Man up!" Harry said and slapped his arm playfully. Dudley laughed nervously as he opened his eyes again to see that Harry had been right. Ron was trying to hide a smile behind his hand but failed miserably.

"Laugh all you want, I didn't know we hadn't 'taken off' or whatever." Harry waited for Dudley to calm down before he kicked off. They did not go that high, Dudley just had to put his foot down and he would be able to feel the grass. They circled around for a bit before they decided to stop. The three boys walked around the grounds aimlessly for a while.

"So what do you do besides flying around? I saw that you had some kind of uniform in your trunk." Harry frowned at him.

"You went through my stuff?" Dudley gulped.

"Yeah, well it was two years ago. You went to the bathroom and I snuck inside and saw that your trunk was open. I decided to take a look. I didn't touch anything!" Dudley said and put his hands up in surrender. Harry shook his head a little.

"Well, the uniform you found is for Quidditch. It is a wizarding sport. Kind of like basketball, but on brooms. There are seven players on each team. One keeper, three chasers, two beaters and one seeker. There are a total of four balls in the game. The biggest one used to score goals is called a quaffle. If you score it will be worth 10 points. The chasers are the ones that will try and score the points with that ball. Then there are the two bludgers. The two beaters will try and aim the budgers at you with bats to throw you off. The keepers job is to prevent the other team from scoring. Then there is the seeker. The seekers job is to locate, chase and eventually capture the golden snitch, the smallest of the four balls. When the seeker catches it their team will earn 150 points and ends the game. It is very unusual for a team to win without catching the snitch, though it isn't impossible…. Dudley?" Harry looked into Dudleys wide eyes.

"I-I am just amazed. I don't think I have ever heard you talk so passionately about anything before." Harry smiled at him.

"Well, thanks.. I guess."

"No really Harry. And the game sounds really cool! What position do you play?"

"I play seeker, and I am team captain."

"I always thought of you as more of a runner, not a flyer." Dudley said without thinking. He had just been reminiscing about all the times Harry had outrun him in the past. He really was a good runner.

"Hey!" Harry said, though he couldn't keep away the smile tugging at his lips. Dudley started backing away from him. Harry had the most mischievous look in his eyes.

"More of a runner, huh?"

Dudley laughed nervously and started running. He knew Harry would catch him eventually but he had never heard him laugh that joyfully as he took off after him. He didn't mind being Harry personal snitch not when his cousin was finally opening up to him. So Dudley slowed his pace and smiled as he felt Harry run up next to him, knowing he was going to be tackled at any moment.


End file.
